As I approached my position as the YA coordinator at a new library, one of the things I knew I wanted to do was to evaluate my maker programming and try and recreate the parts of it that were successfull while making any necessary changes to improve on the model. And since it was a […]

Can you imagine having a Maker Faire at your school? That’s the case at Schurz High School in Chicago, where students are helping host the annual Chicago Northside Mini Maker Faire, which draws 2,000 attendees.

A librarian in rural Illinois uses an Ezra Jack Keats Mini Grant to connect local fourth-graders with the architecture and history of their town, while also studying the author’s works. Watch a video about the project.

Children’s librarian and Summer Teen speaker Marissa Lieberman shares how she successfully organized East Orange (NJ) Public Library’s first Tosho-con—a conference dedicated to anime and geek culture for tweens, teens, and their families.

The Skokie (IL) Public Library’s involvement in a four-month community program, Voices of Race, included events for children and adults, a participatory exhibit, talking points for meaningful dialogue, and more.

This article was published in School Library Journal's June 2015 issue. Subscribe today and save up to 35% off the regular subscription rate.

Colleen Graves, SLJ Maker Workshop speaker and 2014 School Librarian of the Year Finalist, describes how her little middle school library maker space grew to encompass an inter-school catapult challenge, an international network, and the support and enthusiasm of teachers.

The maker movement has taken our culture by storm, and libraries have been stepping up with programs large and small. While some might not view storytime craft projects—such as paper daffodils—as maker, others recognize their vital place on the creation continuum. We at SLJ see the SLJ_CV_May2015nimble response from the library world and recognize how much remains unknown or untested.

This article was published in School Library Journal's May 2015 issue. Subscribe today and save up to 35% off the regular subscription rate.

Making and tinkering have long-been staples of the Hispanic community. Tim Wadham shares Spanish-language, bilingual, and Latino-focused books and crafts that are just right for maker spaces looking to diversify their offerings.

This article was published in School Library Journal's May 2015 issue. Subscribe today and save up to 35% off the regular subscription rate.

On an average day, at least 10 students help Laura Gardner run the Dartmouth (MA) Middle School library. Altogether, over 40 seventh and eighth-grade students work there each year. She couldn’t do it without them.

Students at a Brooklyn vocational school and occupational training center constructed furniture for themselves and their library. They’re part of a movement empowering people of all abilities to create and build.

This article was published in School Library Journal's May 2015 issue. Subscribe today and save up to 35% off the regular subscription rate.